HOW, AND HOW MUCH, TO STIMULATE THE ECONOMY

The battle over the economic stimulus package has begun, with the measure now unlikely to be approved by Inauguration Day and reports saying Obama advisers support $300 billion in tax breaks. Team Obama meanwhile is scrambling to replace the now former Commerce Secretary nominee Bill Richardson, as Congressional Democrats strategize on climate change and stem cell research. Stay on top of the choices we face: see our Citizen's Survival Kit.

 
 

The Voter's Survival Kit

The Economy:
Keeping Up
and Getting
Ahead
Iraq and Beyond:
Staying Safe in
a Dangerous
World
Health Care:
Your Money
or Your
Life
Taxes, Spending and Debt:
Has the Bill
Arrived?
Immigration:
Who Gets to
Come, Who
Gets to Stay
Climate Change:
Is it Getting
Warm in
Here?

 
 

OUR FAVORITE POLITICAL MOVIES

It's hard to top the drama of the times we're in – with enormous decisions facing the new administration and Congress – but sometimes we find inspiration in the movies. From scandals to dreams and tears to laughs – we love the way movies let us look at real issues through new eyes. Check out our list of favorites, then log on and add your own picks to the list.

 
 

Get Widgets! Great Tools For Active Citizens

Being an active part of our democracy means keeping informed about the challenges facing our nation, discussing them with others, and telling our elected officials and other leaders how you feel about the issues and what you'd like them to do. Our nonpartisan Citizen's Survival Kit helps you get the job done. Here's a little more help: handy free fact-based, nonpartisan widgets you can put onto your own web site to keep the spotlight on the issues as we prepare to enter a new era in Washington.

Inauguration Day Countdown clock
The Inauguration Day Countdown clock, from Public Agenda, automatically updates the number of days and hours remaining until the president-elect is sworn in on January 20th, 2009. This clock is a great way to remind yourself – and all who visit your web site – that we're entering a new era and the time is now to keep the focus on the issues.


OpenCongress
This widget, from OpenCongress.org, helps you keep track of what's going on in Congress.


You Decide
There's a lot at stake for the new president and Congress - and a lot to debate. This widget, from KQED, asks people to take a position on a issue, then argues the other side – a nonpartisan way to help voters think about the choices involved in proposed solutions to public policy problems.


Campaign Cash Counters
Here it comes: the 111th Congress, which begins on January 3rd, 2009. What did it take, money-wise, for these men and women to win or hang on to their seats? These OpenSecrets.org widgets track election spending by candidate, political party and issue.


The National Debt Clock
The National Debt Clock, from FacingUp.org, an initiative of which Public Agenda is a partner, updates constantly to show the current amount owed by Uncle Sam and his taxpayers (you, me, and if nothing is done, our children and grandchildren).


What's On The Front Page?
This widget, from NewspaperIndex.com, displays the front pages of U.S. newspapers - a different newspaper each time the widget is loaded – each newspaper chosen at random.


Google's Historical Elections Map
A cool map that can be embedded on your web site or blog which shows voting trends, including demographic breakdowns, for presidential elections going back to 1980.


Presidential Money Race
This widget, from MAPLight.org, can tell you who backed who, in terms of fundraising, in the presidential race.


 
 

DEBATES 2008

The debates were great political theater and an opportunity for critical thinking: listening to the candidates and comparing their answers to what we know and what we’d like to know.

Click here to see debate videos, our frame-by-frame comments, transcripts of what the candidates said and didn't say, the promises that were made, and more, as we head into a new era in Washington.